New Browzar browser treads lightly on the web

A new web browser caters to those who wish to leave no tracks on the host …

Those who wish to surf the web with a bit more privacy have another option to add to their toolbag, with the recently released (in beta form) web browser, whimsically named "Browzar." Browzar is the brainchild of Ajaz Ahmed, who some years ago founded the Freeserve ISP in the UK.

Browzar's primary selling point is that it is designed to leave no user footprints on the host computer. Any cookies that Browzar accepts are deleted at the end of the session. No cache files are kept, there is no browser history to scan, and the application has no form autocomplete feature. In short, Browzar is about as feature-free a browser as you are likely to come across.

The program does create one text file for itself in order to keep track of the current session, and that file is deleted when Browzar is closed. The developers admit that—should Browzar crash—the text file could be left behind, but comments on the Browzar web site emphasize that merely reopening the application and closing it again will cause Browzar to delete the stray file.

By now, some readers may be ready to point out that you can set the preferences in almost any browser to delete history and cache files at shut down. On that topic, the creators point out that Browzar isn't necessarily meant to become your one and only web browser. Instead, they see it as an additional tool, which can be used when you want to surf without tracks. Additionally, they point out that many users are intimidated by the concept of changing their browser settings, or are just too lazy to do so. Browzar doesn't even have an option to save history (or any real set of preferences at all), so pretty much anyone can run it and feel comfortable that they are leaving nothing behind.

Browzar is being touted as a great tool for those who surf the web from Internet cafes. It's a portable app, so it can be run without installation from almost any flash drive, or downloaded very quickly to a host computer (the .exe file is 264KB). Since nothing is saved, private accounts can be accessed without leaving personal information behind. Of course, we should point out that any information entered on a network has the possibility of being traced through other means, so the use of Browzar shouldn't be considered a panacea for all security issues.

How does it work? I tested it on a Windows XP machine (Mac and Linux versions are in the works). My initial impressions are that it renders quickly, and the pages I checked rendered well, with no obvious oddities showing up during a short period of surfing. I did get it to crash by closing it as it was playing a video on YouTube, but it's beta software, so some instability is to be expected.

At first, I wondered what the Browzar company's angle was, since the application is commercially produced, yet available for free. It appears that the Browzar browser serves as something of a stealth gateway to the company's own search portal. The fixed home page is the Browzar portal page, and the now-almost-standard search box in the upper right corner of the application window performs its searches using the Browzar site. While no advertising is obvious at this time, we can probably assume that the company has some plans to add it to the search portal, or it will need to look into some other revenue streams.